Michael Palin: The Collection

Span the globe with Michael Palin as he travels his most audacious and entertaining journeys, including Around The World in 80 Days, Pole to Pole, Full Circle, Himalaya, Sahara, New Europe, Hemingway Adventure and Great Railway Journeys. The gallivanting ex-Pythoner turned intrepid explorer leads your armchair expedition to the far reaches of the planet where you'll visit little-known cultures rich with history - and astounding traditions. extras include interviews, outtakes, deleted scenes and "making-of" featurettes.

Michael Palin: Around the World in 80 Days
Many regard Michael Palin's debut journey as one of the best documentaries of all time. This highly anticipated US DVD release captures the Pythonite's attempt to replicate the exploits of Jules Verne's fictional hero, Phileas Fogg, who wished to travel around the world in 80 days. From riding a camel in Africa to eating snake in China to meeting Monty Python fans in Greece, Palin soaks in the world-not simply as a sightseeing tourist, but as an adventurer sharing the landmarks, history, terrain, climate, cuisine, culture-and characters-of this astounding trek. Climb aboard and embark on an award-winning worldwide adventure. Extras include an exclusive interview with your world tourguide, Michael Palin. Brilliant.

Michael Palin: Pole to Pole
Join Michael Palin and go Pole to Pole in seven amazing hours. Palin, whose global adventures may someday eclipse his pioneering comedy as part of the Monty Python troupe, treks to 17 countries on two continents-from Greenland in the north to Chile in the south-and then wins another BAFTA® Award! Along the way, the delightful globetrotter and comic commentator has a great time encountering the most interesting people, places and situations. And so will you! He travels the Black Sea on a Soviet-registered steamer while Communism is collapsing on land. In Africa, he rides a rattletrap train, where the less-thanappetizing entrée is a very spiny fish. He shops in a Sudanese camel market, and witnesses the bloody end of apartheid in South Africa. After meeting Santa Claus, he makes a final hectic dash to the South Pole. Extras include an exclusive interview with globe-trekker extraordinaire Michael Palin.

Michael Palin: Full Circle
British actor and comedian Michael Palin takes you along on an entertaining journey around the Pacific Rim, traveling by boat, train, plane and helicopter. Meet the Eskimos of the island of Diomede in the Bering Strait. Depart in one of their skin boats for Alaska's mainland, then voyage on to view Russia's westernmost wonders. Visit Japan's legendary Kodo Drummers, a Zen Buddhist temple, and as a contrast, downtown Tokyo. Your itinerary includes the mysteries of China's holiest mountain, a nap in Mao's bed in the Governor's Castle, plus journeys to Vietnam, the perilous Sula Seas, Australia, South America, Mexico and finally full circle back to Alaska.

Michael Palin: Himalaya
Prepare for the peak of adventure as Monty Python's Michael Palin embarks on a majestic 2000-mile journey hailed as "... a friendly, absorbing tour through an astonishing part of the world" (The Times). Encountering extremes of wealth, poverty, altitude and freezing temperatures, the witty Palin comes face-to-face with the Dalai Lama, the Bhutanese Royal Family and the once-feared head-hunting tribe of the Konyak, among others. The scenery will transport you, the people will inspire you, and the commentary will tickle you.

Michael Palin: Sahara
Your host for this breathtaking travelogue has been accused of being The Nice Monty Pythonite. See if you think Michael Palin deserves such a dastardly reputation as he accompanies you from Gibraltar through Tangiers and the Arab world, down through Africa and across the Sahara desert. As you cross desolate sands, crocodile- infested rivers and bleak mountain ranges, you'll discover some of the richest cultures and most inhospitable climates on the planet, in the company of one of its most engaging inhabitants.

Michael Palin: New Europe
Accompany seasoned globetrotter and timeless comedy icon Michael Palin on his latest adventure, a glimpse behind the once-forbidden Iron Curtain. Collecting over twenty passport stamps this time around, Monty Python alum Palin entertains and educates with his trademark wit and wisdom, as he travels throughout Eastern Europe, through the Baltic States, the former Soviet Union and Turkey, touching cultures largely unfamiliar to Westerners. Of course, no Palin journey would be complete without introducing you to some of the most interesting folks you've never heard of, including a Bulgarian moonshiner, as well as a transvestite folk singer, now a Balkan superstar. Highly recommended for fans of history, travel, European culture and, of course, Michael Palin.

Michael Palin: Hemingway Adventure
Depressive, disaster-prone, alcoholic and much married, Hemingway is viewed through the various locations he visited and wrote about in his novels. Comparing modern-day locations with rare archive footage featuring Hemingway, Palin follows him through Cuba, Spain, Kenya and many other places. Palin's brand of light-hearted curiosity is very much in evidence as he looks at the novelist's obsession with the bullfight, passion for reckless driving and, of course, his literature.

Michael Palin: Great Railway Journeys
A combination of two railway adventures filmed with Palin. The first was part of his first series filmed in 1980 where he traveled the length of Britain by train covering over 785 miles. Palin's second railway journey was in 1994 and took him from Londonderry to the western tip of Ireland. He travels his ‘family line' as he attempts to trace his great grandmother who left Ireland for the USA over 150 years ago.

For the last 20 years, Palin has been the undisputed king of travelogues, exploring the world in the documentary mini-series Around the World in 80 Days, Pole to Pole, Full Circle, Hemingway Adventure, Great Railway Journeys, Sahara, Himalaya and New Europe. His irresistibly affable personality and casual, well-worn delivery made Palin the perfect everyman to follow through these long, potentially dangerous excursions. - John Scott Lewinski, Wired Blog Network

Himalaya
"If only all travel shows were this good ... Michael Palin really knows how to entertain, yet he's also totally objective, even when faced with the weirdest of scenarios. Consequently, his world odysseys have been a delight, and ... this new series is just as enthralling." -Observer

"These films are classy television, beautifully shot ... They're also inventively researched, and he is an engaging and sympathetic guide."- Sunday Times

"He is on terrific form, from the gunmakers of Darra in Pakistan - where you can get a Kalashnikov for £80 - to the mad dentist with the Fifties' style drilling gear. Himalaya is five-star Palin, with beautiful photography, fascinating stories and funny asides.We now await breathless encounters with big mountains." -Sunday Express

"Even for a Palin travelogue the pace was breathtaking, as he lurched from precipice to precipice." -The Times

"They love him, we love him, the scenery is splendid. Everyone is happy." -Guardian

"Michael Palin is probably one of the best-liked, most admired - and among armchair tourists, envied - people in Britain. It was easy to see why as he embarked on Himalaya ... and overwhelmed us with his unforced charm." -Daily Mail

"...another magical journey with Michael Palin ... It's a wonder the British Museum hasn't taken the intrepid traveller's passport from him, put it under protective custody and hailed it as a national treasure." -Western Mail

"Palin's devotees will revel in his customary antics - playing up to a crowd of schoolkids, getting caught in the path of a team of runaway bulls, losing a bet on a game of polo beneath snowy peaks a mere 12,500ft up.There are frequent moments when you wonder just how his luck holds, or how he manages to chance upon such a string of off-the-wall weirdos, crazy events and colourful moments. Hardly by chance, you think. But the pace is so constantly hectic, and Palin's presence is so diverting, you scarcely have time to raise an eyebrow before the next cavorting amazement is on the horizon.Then there's the scenery, the spaciousness, the gulches, the clinging villages, those snowy, vertiginous peaks. No one informs and entertains, or breaks down barriers of ignorance or assumption with greater panache and bonhomie." -Scotsman

"Michael Palin is king of the authored film. Give the ex-Python a destination and a cameraman and he'll have you gripped within seconds. Himalaya With Michael Palin is no exception. This is another great series in a long line of success for the globetrotter ... he specialises in taking us to remote areas of the world but instantly makes them familiar to us. His gently mocking and inquisitive style entertains and informs ... The series is a delight and is even superior to his last effort in the desert." -Sunday Express

"...one of the hits of the autumn TV season..."- Independent on Sunday

"This is a friendly, absorbing tour through an astonishing part of the world." -The Times

"As ever, Palin concentrates on personalities, slipping in discreet asides about the absence of women from public life and suchlike. When added to his comic timing (see an English lesson he gives to a group of children), it turns what could be National Geographic-lite into something more substantial and far more interesting." -Independent

"...excellent series of postcards from the Himalayas ... Engaging and amusing, Palin is good value as always." -Observer

"Excellent stuff, as ever." -Sunday Times

"...the photography was wonderful throughout..." -Daily Telegraph

"The great photography certainly means viewers can be assured of the same as usual, and they can also flatter themselves that they are in good company. Apparently, even the Dalai Lama tunes in." -Sunday Times

"Himalaya With Michael Palin - quality up the Khyber." -People

"Britain's finest ambassador..." -Guardian

"What marks Palin out - in contrast to so many TV presenters nowadays - is his sheer niceness ... Palin has carved an invaluable career by shunning cynicism, trusting everyone and questioning nobody's motives. Instead of ‘why is this bastard lying to me?', we get ‘what's your favourite colour?'. Palin plays the friendly, bumbling Brit who gets spanked at cricket and admires local skills (such as gunmaking). He tries his tongue at languages and throws his shoes over a wall to entertain the kids. And the technique pays off. A Palin programme isn't taxing; few of the anomalies of this society are raised - Michael hardly saw a woman in Pakistan's streets - but it's a beautifully filmed watch, and played a small but significant part in helping our understanding of devoutly Muslim communities away from the mosque and the suicide bomb." -Independent on Sunday

"As ever, approaching travel like a barmy explorer from one of his own Ripping Yarns..." -Guardian

"...the usual set of quirky meetings and situations, as experienced in Around the World in 80 Days, et al ... Palin's shows are well filmed and his comedic observations are undeniably entertaining." -London Evening Standard

"I enjoyed the bull racing most - a kind of dry-land skiing, in which the motor boat was a yoked pair of bulls - but Palin's trip to the Kalash valley was striking, too. This looked as close to Shangri-La as you could have got without an air crash." -Independent

"...a wonderful encounter with an absurdly moustachioed local landowner ... two gorgeous set pieces [the bull race, the polo match] ... the camerawork was stunning." -Daily Telegraph

Sahara
"Palin at his best - funny, pleasant and open-minded ... it is a fabulous travel programme through some of the most haunting places on the planet." -The Times

"...this is the most picturesque and enjoyable Palin trip since the original Around The World In 80 Days."- Guardian

"...it's sharp, warm and entertaining - just like the man himself."- People

"Beautifully shot and genuinely illuminating." -Observer

"Sahara was brilliant television. Visually it was stunning, especially after Palin crossed the Atlas Mountains where we saw ‘a sea of sands - the sort of scene you only see on date packets'. Palin has a gift (shared only with David Attenborough) for making you think you're watching a programme made solely for you. He engages his audience with wit, warmth and curiosity, qualities which also have an immediate effect on those he meets. These strangers seem happy to chat away for hours and reveal anything. But Palin the Python is never far away, pouncing on anything with comic potential. He is in his element when faced with anything out of the ordinary - the steam bath, the sheep's head and Mr Thank You man." -Sunday Express

"...the intrepid Palin takes to it like a duck to water - or a camel to sand - and the result is a hugely enjoyable collage of his colourful and fascinating adventures ... A fascinating insight into the people, and the politics, of this barren landscape." -Daily Mail Weekend

"This new series doesn't disappoint ... he's as patient and positive as ever ... but as the Atlas mountains recede and the Mauritanian border is crossed, the landscape becomes the star. The camerawork captures all the sun-bleached stillness and bleakness of a mystical place."- Daily Telegraph

"The word legend is thrown around like confetti these days, but surely this is one person who deserves the title. Palin remains a funny, intelligent man." -People

"Palin is a pro ... He is certainly something of a national institution, which is presumably why so many of us will hitch a ride on his camel train." -Sunday Times

"...some fascinating preliminary stop-offs in the bustling market towns of Fez and Marrakesh, but the epic beauty of the desert is worth the wait ... As ever, Palin is a polished presenter, both engaged in the places and characters he encounters and unafraid to inject a little mischievous humour; the end result is a pleasure to watch." -Sunday Telegraph

"He is back on form in his latest travelogue. Once more he is the ordinary bloke in an extraordinary place." -Sunday Times
New Europe

"Yay! Our favourite explorer Michael Palin returns ... Warning: you will want to book a holiday here once you've seen this."  -Sunday Mirror

"I'm delighted to report that TV's favourite globetrotter has been persuaded to pack his battered old suitcase for the umpteenth time and embark upon yet another adventure ... With 20 [countries] to get through in half a dozen episodes, it's quite a whistle-stop tour at times but in typical Palin style it's never less than fascinating, absorbing and richly entertaining."  -Mike Ward, Daily Express

"...his unconfrontational, unobtrusive style works a treat in a region that has, until recently, been decimated by warfare. Far better Palin treading sensitively in, say, Sarajevo than someone like Jeremy Clarkson blundering into town ... The interest levels really pick up in Albania ... There, Palin finds a country that still appears isolated, which ‘looks to the West but feels oriental'. Must-see TV."  -Mail On Sunday

Hemingway Adventures
"When it comes to globe-trotting,give me a ticket to ride with funnyman Michael Palin every time.
He makes a marvellous guide and an amusing travelling companion as well." - Mirror

"...an expert at work... Palin makes it look so easy... he gave the impression that there was
nothing he would rather be doing." - Sunday Times

"Palin is, as ever, an amiable travelling companion." - Observer

"Palin was at his best when bouncing off the facts of Hemingway's life." - Daily Telegraph
Full Circle

"He involves viewers, draws them in and makes them feel like his friends." - Independent

"...a real treat, a skilful blend of the spontaneous and what the suspicious among us might believe was the artfully contrived ... What I had forgotten, since his last jaunt, is what good company Palin is. Where others can make the pursuit of travelogue humour look laboured, he makes it look effortless. He even got away with the old chestnut about Russian baths not having plugs." - Times

"Palin is as agreeable and chatty a guide as you could possibly wish for ... He's adept, too, at drawing our attention to the small touches which offer sudden insights into a society." - Daily Mail

"Palin is that rare creature in television, a commentator who is curious rather than ironically knowing; instructive, not prescriptive ... Palin searches for what is different and strange ... Long may he roam." - Times

"it is Palin's character that holds it all together ... the wry observations, self-deprecation and his virtually indestructible good humour carry [the viewer] through." - Sunday Times

"As so often, he sees things that most tourists could never see - unless they wanted to risk being murdered. Palin always has wonderful guides ... He must be gently opening the eyes and minds of millions." - Guardian

"...seldom flustered, cheery, willing to undergo almost any privations..." Sunday Telegraph

"You know the score.Very, very familiar, but quite fun." - Independent

"Palin manages to sustain and exploit two almost contradictory characteristics. On the one hand, he is the charming amateur for whom everything goes wrong ... However, when the occasion demands it, Palin becomes the total professional, borrowing a uniform and joining a Russian navy choir to sing a familiar folk song, using all the tricks of the trade learned in Monty Python's Flying Circus. He's a lumberjack, remember, and he's OK." - Financial Times

"I've just gone Full Circle with Michael Palin and you will have to go some to match that." - Mirror

"Michael Palin has lost none of his enthusiasm for travel and is still game for anything." - Mirror